By Alex Beard

29th Feb, 2020 | 12:24pm

Report: Everton put £40m price tag on in-demand regular

You get the feeling that Carlo Ancelotti wouldn’t have agreed to become Everton manager if the club was planning to sell its best players.

He’s the sort of ambitious appointment that demands that its employers match his goals for the future.

To do that you cannot allow your very best players to fly the nest, and that’s something the Toffees have to be cognisant of moving forward.

So all this talk of star centre back Mason Holgate potentially leaving Goodison Park recently will be a serious cause of concern for the Italian.

It’s said that Premier League champions Manchester City are looking at signing the 23-year-old to address their defensive issues.

Now, Football Insider have reported that the Blues have put a £40million price tag on the young star.

It’s said that the player’s value has skyrocketed in recent months, from £14million at the start of this season to the above valuation.

That’s an astonishing rise of £26million, evidence of the fantastic progress Holgate has made this campaign.

Would you sell Holgate for £40million?

It’s a tough one, because that sort of money is always hard to turn down, but it would surely be a mistake to part with the youngster right now.

He’s in fantastic form and has undoubtedly been the team’s best centre half this campaign, and that’s something you don’t want to give up.

Ancelotti won’t want to lose any of his top players – that’s a fact. With that said, you could see the Toffees holding out for more than this.

Perhaps they will still sell him, but in today’s market £40million doesn’t seem like the astronomical sort of sum it would take for the club to move on one of their prime pieces.

In other Everton news, it’s being reported that a former Toffees star could be offered back to the club.